Jonathan Goldsmith
| Jonathan Goldsmith | |
|---|---|
 at Susan G. Komen's 8th Annual Fashion For The Cure (September 24, 2009) |
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| Born | Jonathan Goldsmith September 26, 1938 New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Other names | Jonathan Lippe |
| Occupation | The Most Interesting Man in the World |
| Years active | 1962–present |
| Spouse | Barbara Goldsmith (2006) |
Jonathan Goldsmith (born September 26, 1938) is an American actor. He began his career on the New York stage, then started a career in film and television. He appeared in several TV shows in the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. He is best known for appearing in television commercials for Dos Equis beer, beginning in 2006, as the character The Most Interesting Man in the World, in which he speaks with a distinctive deep voice inspired by his deceased sailing partner and friend Carlos Perez.[1]
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[edit] Biography
[edit] Early years
Jonathan Goldsmith was born on September 26, 1938, in New York. His mother was a Conover model and his father was a track coach at James Monroe High School.[2][3] Goldsmith left home at 17 to attend Boston University[4] to pursue a career in acting.
[edit] Career
To advance his acting career, Goldsmith moved to California from New York in 1966.[5] Like many aspiring actors, he found it difficult to gain enough acting work to survive and wound up working various jobs, including driving a garbage truck and working in construction, to help make ends meet.[5]
During his early years in film, Goldsmith performed as "Jonathan Lippe", having taken the name of his stepfather at the age of six.[5] He subsequently changed his professional name back to his birth name, later recalling, "It always made me feel bad for my father, who never caused me any grief about it.... As my career grew and my son was born, I changed my name back to my real name, Goldsmith, so my father could enjoy his son's success and have a grandson to carry his name as well."[5]
Goldsmith first established himself as an actor in Western films, with 25 such appearances.[5] In the 1976 film The Shootist, Goldsmith played a villain who was shot between the eyes by hero John Wayne, who fired blood capsules from a special pellet gun at pointblank range into Goldsmith's face for seven painful takes.[5]
Goldsmith also made guest appearances on 45 television series, including Adam-12, Knight Rider, CHiPs, Eight Is Enough, The Rockford Files, Hawaii Five-O, Barnaby Jones, MacGyver, Murder, She Wrote, Charlie's Angels, Manimal, The Fall Guy, Dynasty, T.J. Hooker, Hardcastle and McCormick, Magnum, P.I., Knots Landing, The A-Team, as well as a few made-for-TV movies. His longest run in a television series was on Dallas, in which he appeared 17 times.
In the 1980s Goldsmith started network marketing businesses (waterless car wash products) Dry Wash & Guard,and also SPRINT which was successful enough to allow him to "retire" from the Hollywood scene; he and his wife purchased an estate in the Sierras. He and his wife later separated, and he moved onto a large sailboat moored in Marina del Rey. As of 2011 he and second wife Barbara (who was his agent when he obtained the Dos Equis role) are moving to a house in the area of Manchester, Vermont.[6]
[edit] Advertising work
Beginning in April 2006 and continuing through 2011, Goldsmith had been featured in a high profile television ad campaign, promoting Dos Equis beer.[7] The campaign, which transformed Goldsmith into the most interesting man in the world, has been credited for helping to fuel a 15.4 percent sales increase for the brand in America in 2009.[5]
He was seen most recently as a celebrity phone answerer on Comedy Central's Night of Too Many Stars, hosted by Jon Stewart, on 21 October 2010.
[edit] Charity work
Goldsmith suppo
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ "The Most Interesting Man in the World - Fox News Video - Fox News". Fox News. 2010-09-27. http://video.foxnews.com/v/4149883/the-most-interesting-man-in-the-world.
- ^ "Dos Equis’ pitchman is Jewish actor living in Marina del Rey". www.jewishjournal.com. 2010-05-04. http://www.jewishjournal.com/hollywood_jew/article/dos_equis_pitchman_is_jewish_actor_living_in_marina_del_rey_20100504/.
- ^ [1] Paumgarten, Nick, Interesting The New Yorker, 7 February 2011
- ^ "Boston University". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boston_University.
- ^ a b c d e f g Jamal Abd-Naser, "The Most Interesting (Actor) in the World," Cigar Aficionado, vol. 18, no. 6 (October 2010), pp. 162-168
- ^ [2] New Yorker
- ^ Karlene Lukovitz (2008-09-26). "MediaPost Publications Dos Equis Tour Plays Off 'Most Interesting' Campaign 09/26/2008". www.mediapost.com. http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=91406.
